Sec. 3301. Strengthen protections for Federal election records
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Congress finds as follows: Congress has explicit and broad authority to regulate the time, place, and manner of Federal elections under the Elections Clause under article I, section 4, clause 1 of the Constitution, including by establishing standards for the fair, impartial, and uniform administration of Federal elections by State and local officials. The Elections Clause grants Congress plenary and paramount jurisdiction over the whole subject of Federal elections, Ex parte Siebold, 100 U.S. 371, 388 (1879), allowing Congress to implement a complete code for congressional elections .
Smiley v. Holm, 285 U.S. 355, 366 (1932). The fair and impartial administration of Federal elections by State and local officials is central to the successful working of this government , Ex parte Yarbrough, 110 U.S. 651, 666 (1884), and to protect the act of voting . . . and the election itself from corruption or fraud , id. at 661–62. The Elections Clause thus grants Congress the authority to strengthen the protections for Federal election records. Congress has intervened in the electoral process to protect the health and legitimacy of federal elections, including for example, Congress’ enactment of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 as a response to several issues that occurred during the 2000 Presidential election.
See The Elections Clause: Constitutional Interpretation and Congressional Exercise , Hearing Before Comm. on House Administration, 117th Cong. (2021), written testimony of Vice Dean Franita Tolson at 3. Section 301 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 ( 52 U.S.C. 20701 ) is amended— by striking Every officer and inserting the following: Every officer ; by striking records and papers and inserting records (including electronic records), papers, and election equipment each place the term appears; by striking record or paper and inserting record (including electronic record), paper, or election equipment ; by inserting (but only under the direct administrative supervision of an election officer).
Notwithstanding any other provision of this section, the paper record of a voter’s cast ballot shall remain the official record of the cast ballot for purposes of this title after upon such custodian ; by inserting , or acts in reckless disregard of, after fails to comply with ; and by inserting after subsection
(a)the following: The requirement in subsection
(a)to preserve election equipment shall not be construed to prevent the reuse of such equipment in any election that takes place within twenty-two months of a Federal election described in subsection (a), provided that all electronic records, files, and data from such equipment related to such Federal election are retained and preserved. Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this subsection, the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security, in consultation with the Election Assistance Commission and the Attorney General, shall issue guidance regarding compliance with subsections
(a)and (b), including minimum standards and best practices for retaining and preserving records and papers in compliance with subsection (a). Such guidance shall also include protocols for enabling the observation of the preservation, security, and transfer of records and papers described in subsection
(a)by the Attorney General and by a representative of each party, as defined by the Attorney General. . Not later than 60 days after the date of the enactment of this Act, the Attorney General, in consultation with the Director of the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency of the Department of Homeland Security and the Election Assistance Commission, shall promulgate regulations establishing the election security protocols and conditions, including appropriate chain of custody and proper preservation practices, which will apply to the inspection of the paper ballots which are required to be retained and preserved under section 301 of the Civil Rights Act of 1960 ( 52 U.S.C. 20701 ). The Attorney General may bring an action in an appropriate district court of the United States for such declaratory or injunctive relief as may be necessary to ensure compliance with the regulations promulgated under subsection (a).
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3 references not yet in our index
- 100 U.S. 371
- 285 U.S. 355
- 110 U.S. 651
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cites case law
Sec. 3301
Strengthen protections for Federal election records
SCOTUS100 U.S. 371
SCOTUS285 U.S. 355
SCOTUS110 U.S. 651
Cites 4Cited by 0 across 0 sources